Iran blames ‘Western hyprocrisy’

TEHRAN: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif blamed "Western hypocrisy" for the attacks on two mosques in New Zealand that killed at least 49 worshippers and wounded dozens during Friday prayers.

"Western hypocrisy of defending demonisation of Muslims as ‘freedom of expression’ must end," Zarif tweeted. "Impunity in Western ‘democracies’ to promote bigotry leads to this," the tweet read.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi earlier "strongly condemned the... inhuman and savage" attacks and urged New Zealand’s government to punish "the perpetrators... without any reservations".